Tellarknight
"tellarknight" (テラナイト teranaito) (a portmanteau of the words "(s)tella®"/''"(sa)tella®"'' and "knight") is an archetype of LIGHT Warrior-Type monsters that debuted in Duelist Alliance. They focus on the quick and easy Summoning of monsters, their effects often activating upon being Summoned by any means, including Normal Summon, Special Summon and even Flip Summon. So far, the members are all Level/Rank 4, except "Constellarknight Diamond". This archetype's artwork, name and type of gameplay is similar to that of the "Constellars". The Main Deck members are named after the brightest stars in the night sky and the Xyz Monsters are named after the asterisms formed by those stars. Playing Style The archetype focuses on rapid swarm tactics and easy pluses through its "Satellarknight" monsters, both of which are used to fuel the Summon of the "Stellarknight" Xyz Monsters. This generally revolves around the use of "Satellarknight Altair" and "Satellarknight Vega" in succession to generate advantage and field presence, with the one played second Summoning another "tellarknight" to the field. At this point, multiple options can be pursued based on the situation, allowing the archetype a great level of toolboxing capabilities. Summoning "Satellarknight Deneb" allows the player to add 1 "tellarknight" monster from their Deck to their hand. Although this excludes Spell/Trap support, it is of invaluable help to the archetype, as it is not only the third Xyz Material needed to Summon a "Stellarknight" monster but also sets up later Xyz plays with "Altair" and "Vega". "Satellarknight Alsahm" is another useful card for the theme, as it goes some way to secure potential OTK opportunities. With its 1000 LP deduction, "Alsahm" can be used alongside the "Magician"/"Odd-Eyes" Pendulum engine to perform one example of an OTK using a "tellarknight" Deck. It is also useful throughout a duel in damage limitation, such as against popular meta game threats such as "Solemn Warning" and "Soul Charge". "Satellarknight Unukalhai" can be a big help in setting up plays with "Altair", and makes itself at home in the slower non-Pendulum variant. Although its effect can be somewhat lackluster when used in conjunction with the aforementioned Pendulum engine it can occasionally be of some use, especially in combination with "Satellarknight Skybridge" for an immediate tag-out for "Altair". Its 1800 ATK also makes it the Deck's strongest Main Deck monster offensively, making it useful in attacking over monsters when the Extra Deck in unavailable (this is most notable when you cannot Special Summon, such as when facing "El Shaddoll Midrash", "Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo", "Archlord Kristya" or "Vanity's Emptiness"). First introduced in The New Challengers were "Satellarknight Betelgeuse", "Satellarknight Procyon" and "Satellarknight Sirius". All of them focus on manipulating your hand and Graveyard, with the latter two allowing you to draw while the former trades field presence for recycling. Ending your combo with "Betelgeuse" can be useful if you have more monsters than necessary to Summon the desired Xyz Monster. Then, after using that monster's effect, "Betelgeuse" can return the detached material to your hand for use next turn. Although "The Warrior Returning Alive" may seem like a wiser choice, as it does not require you to Summon anything and does not run the risk of monster interception, "Betelgeuse" can reach the hand or field very easily and can also serve as an Xyz Material if no other monsters are available. Finally, its 1900 DEF makes it the strongest Main Deck monster defensively, making him a suitable wall against almost all meta game Level 4 or lower monsters stat-wise. "Procyon" can sometimes be useful not only for easy draws, but also for turning "Deneb" searches into "Altair" or "Sirius" targets. When used alongside "Sirius, it can allow for quite a strong draw engine; however, this can take time and does not keep up with the high Xyz-churning speed of the Deck. Also, considering that such a combo can strike inconsistency between "Vega" and "Altair", "Procyon" is seen by most as a poor card that does nothing to fix the archetype's flaws or contribute to its play style. By far the best Main Deck card released for "tellarknights" in The New Challengers, "Sirius" helps the Deck in many ways and resolves previously unaddressed problems. It serves as a "Pot of Avarice" for the Deck and, despite only providing 1 extra card, lets the "tellarknights" regain resources and "Deneb" search targets. All going well, its effect is almost always live after a couple of Xyz plays and, like "Betelgeuse", can be left on the field after a play to clean up the Graveyard and top it off with a draw. Be aware, however, that this can mitigate the grave-loading effects of "Unukalhai" and "Procyon", and limit the effectiveness of "Altair". At the same time, it should be noted that both of the aforementioned cards can be used in combination with "Sirius", as said combo either leaves cards in the Deck (with "Unukalhai") or puts cards from your hand into the Deck for extra draws beforehand (with "Procyon") and effectively allows for free draws, whilst also leaving/making targets for "Skybridge". Thus far, there are two "Stellarknight" Xyz monsters: "Delteros" and "Triveil". Introduced in Duelist Alliance as the archetype's first Xyz boss, "Delteros" has three effects. The first is a Continuous Effect that prevents your opponent from activating cards or effects upon the Summon of ANY monster you control whilst "Delteros" has Xyz Material, including "Delteros" itself: since the "Satellarknights" and "Triveil" all work upon their Summon, this effect is extremely helpful in securing your long strings of Summons to create your Xyz Monsters against anti-Summon threats such as "Bottomless Trap Hole", "Torrential Tribute" and "Solemn Warning". The second is an Ignition Effect: by detaching 1 Xyz Material from "Delteros", you can destroy 1 card your opponent controls. This effect is less useful than it might seem at first, since the meta game is riddled with cards that either can't be destroyed or rely on destruction, and it also can only be used twice before the first effect of "Delteros" becomes useless. The final effect Special Summons a "tellarknight" from your hand or Deck when "Delteros" hits the Graveyard: this also occurs when its Summon is negated, and allows the Deck to maintain advantage. For this reason, it is often good to leave "Delteros" on the field for at least a turn before using it, as you will then be able to use your the effects of "tellarknight" when "Delteros" is destroyed. Although "Delteros" requires three Xyz Materials to be made, it is otherwise generic, allowing its to collaborate in other Level 4 themes, as well. This archetype can Summon rather easily "Number 86: Heroic Champion - Rhongomiant" at full power to devastate your opponent's resources if played well. "Triveil" is a very powerful card and a welcome addition to the "tellarknight" entourage. Unlike "Delteros", "Triveil" requires 3 Level 4 "tellarknights" to be Summoned. Upon Summon, "Triveil" returns all other cards on the field to the hand. This already powerful ability can be combined with the first effect of "Delteros" to prevent anything from stopping "Triveil". Once per turn, "Triveil" can send a random card from your opponent's hand to the Graveyard by detaching 1 material, a potentially deadly effect for themes that require a large and/or specific hand setup. The final effect is much the same as "Delteros", except "Triveil" Special Summons the replacement "tellarknight" from the Graveyard instead. This is great because it allows you to revive your fallen "Stellarknights", too, but is also much stronger in the late game. Another advantage to "Triveil" is the fact that its all-field-bounce effect can reuse dead copies of "Call of the Haunted" and "Fiendish Chain", much like how "Giant Trunade" once did in the past. Recommended Cards Category:TCG and OCG archetypes